


Zaeed's Birthday

by Pixelatrix



Series: Unconventional Sequels, One-Shots and Alternate Chapters [1]
Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Birthday, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Multi, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-12
Updated: 2013-07-12
Packaged: 2017-12-19 05:22:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/879919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pixelatrix/pseuds/Pixelatrix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Silly one-shot related to my  Unconventional series about Zaeed's birthday.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Zaeed's Birthday

_From: Finnegan_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: Zaeed’s Birthday._

_It’s in two weeks._

_Think you can swing a trip to San Francisco?_

_Fin_

* * *

_From: Steven_

_To: Finnegan_

_Subj: re: Zaeed’s Birthday._

_He doesn’t celebrate._

_Ever._

_Steven_

* * *

_From: Finnegan_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: re: Zaeed’s Birthday._

_I know._

_But I need you to do the cooking…and baking._

_Please?_

_Fin_

* * *

_From: Steven_

_To: Finnegan_

_Subj: re: Zaeed’s Birthday._

_I’d like to go on record stating that this is a terrible idea._

_When do you want me there?_

_Steven_

* * *

_A week later…_

* * *

_Inter-Relay Text Chat_

_Location: San Francisco_

_To: Fin_

_From: Zaeed_

_21:17 F: How soon can you be in San Fran?_

_21:23 Z: Why?_

_21:24 F: Because I miss you._

_21:26 Z: Now isn’t…I can’t._

_21:28 F: Please? Next Week?_

_21:30 Z: No._

_21:33 Z: Maybe in a couple of weeks._

_21:38 F: I need your help._

_21:39 Z: Fin._

_21:41 F: I do. I’ve been having trouble with the biotic hate group again._

_21:43 Z: Do not goddamn lie to me, Fin. I’ll come visit you in a couple of weeks._

_21:44 F: Fine. I’ll ask Steven then._

_21:46 Z: I’ll be there by Thursday at the goddamn latest._

_21:47 F: Thank you. Bye._

_21:48 User has disconnected._

* * *

Zaeed frowned at the closed chat.  Fin was a terrible liar.  She was obviously up to something.  He never celebrated his goddamn birthday.  It was the day that Vido had shot him. The only fucking celebrating that he wanted to do was with a bullet through the bastards head.  He hoped to hell that she hadn’t gotten it into her head to plan something for his birthday.

* * *

_From: Zaeed_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: Fin_

_What is she bloody up to?_

_Zaeed_

* * *

_From: Steven_

_To: Zaeed_

_Subj: re: Finnegan_

_No idea._

_Be nice._

_Steven_

* * *

_From: Zaeed_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: Bastard_

_So she is planning something, and you know what it is._

_Talk her the fuck out of it._

_Zaeed_

* * *

_From: Steven_

_To: Zaeed_

_Subj: re: Finnegan._

_Have you ever tried talking her out of anything?_

_How successful were you?_

_Steven_

* * *

_From: Zaeed_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: re: Fin._

_The next bloody time we decide that we need a woman in our lives._

_Oh fuck it._

_I’ll do my goddamn best to be nice._

_Zaeed_

* * *

_His best might have been stretching it._

“Where is she?” Hackett stepped back into the living room to find the cake on the floor along with everything else that had been on the dining room table.

“Gone.” Zaeed had what looked like a black eye developing. “She cleared the table with a biotic blast before she went.”

“Why?”

“I…didn’t…I wasn’t goddamn nice.” Zaeed crouched down to start cleaning up the mess.

“Could you be a little more specific?” Hackett frowned at him.

“I don’t want other goddamn black eye.” Zaeed tossed some of the broken plates in the trash.

“You clean this mess up. I’ll go find her.” Hackett headed for the door.  He pulled up a vid-chat as he walked but Fin didn’t answer.  He tried a text chat but received the same response.

* * *

_From: Steven_

_To: Finnegan_

_Subj: Where are you?”_

_It’s just me._

_I really don’t want to have to walk the entire city trying to find you._

_Steven_

* * *

_From: Finnegan_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: Stow Lake_

_I’m feeding the birds._

_Fin_

* * *

He found her sitting on a bench next to the lake.  She was hunched down on the bench trying to block out the cold breeze.  She’d forgotten her jacket.  He pulled off his coat to wrap around her shivering shoulders.

“Sorry I trashed the food.” She tossed a piece of bread at the ducks.

Hackett sat next to her. “What happened?”

“You were right.  It was a bad idea.” She slid over until she was next to him.  She lifted his arm to lean into him once he’d draped it over her shoulder. “It’s freezing.”

“How was I right?” He pulled her closer.

“He doesn’t like to celebrate his birthday.”  She shoved her hands into the coat pockets to warm them.

“Are you going to tell me what happened?” Hackett watched the ducks on the lake.

“He brought up the fact that I don’t celebrate…” Fin’s eyes flickered up to meet his. “Christmas.”

“Christmas?”  Hackett didn’t understand why that would cause her to be so upset.

“It’s the only holiday that we really celebrated at home.  My mom always went a little over the top. It…I haven’t celebrated since Mindoir.  He tried to get me to a couple times early on…and it didn’t go well.” Fin brushed the bread crumbs from her jeans. “I just wanted to celebrate his birthday for once.  You two always do things for mine.”

“And I was a goddamn bastard.” Zaeed stood behind the back of the bench and leaned forward between them. “Sorry, sweetheart.”

Fin tilted her head to the right to get a better look at him. “I’m sorry.  Steven told me it was a bad idea.”

“No, Sweetheart.” Zaeed bent over to wrap his arms around her. “It was a very sweet idea.  I’m a grumpy bastard.”

“True.” Fin smiled up at him. “I’m sad about the cake though.  Next time, remind me to just punch you and leave the food alone.”

“Can we get the fuck out of this freezing wind?” Zaeed rubbed his cold cheek against hers. “I’ll buy dinner.”

“You can’t buy dinner on your birthday.” Fin sounded personally affronted by the idea.

“The hell he can’t.  It’s his fault that all my hard work ended up in the trash.” Hackett thought it sounded like a great idea. 

“I’m buying,” Zaeed insisted as they started towards the skycar that he’d driven over in.

“So what do you want for your birthday?” Fin asked once she was seated in the vehicle still wrapped in Hackett’s coat.

“Curse.”

“What?” She frowned first at Zaeed and then at Hackett who was laughing.

“Curse. One curse word. That’s what I want for my goddamn birthday.” Zaeed turned his attention to the road.

Fin was silent for a long moment before she finally spoke up again. “Happy fucking birthday, you goddamn bastard.”

“I love you too.” Zaeed laughed the entire way to the restaurant. “I’m beginning to like the entire concept of birthdays.”


End file.
